It All Started With an Apple
by Linlaah
Summary: Alice never thought she would get a chance to see all of her Wonderland friends again. Little did she know that she would soon return, and find things almost the same as the last time. Watch her reunite with old friends and make a startling new discovery.


Summary: Alice never thought she would get a chance to see all of her Wonderland friends again. Little did she know that she would soon return, and find things just the same as when she left. Well, okay, maybe not **just** the same. Pretty gosh darn close though. Watch her reunite with old friends and foes, as well as make a startling new discovery. (Rated T)

A/N: First off I'd like to say that I originally posted this to my friend SusanPevensie394's account by mistake, since when I was typing this up I didn't know she was logged onto her account(I was using her computer.)

I thought of this after watching the 1999 made for TV movie version of Alice in Wonderland, starring Tina Majorino as Alice, and including the wonderful performances of Ben Kingsley, Martin Short, Whoopi Goldberg, Peter Ustinov, Gene Wilder, and Miranda Richardson(to name the main stars.) If you haven't already seen this movie, it's a must for true Alice fans. After all, who doesn't like a small helping of singing, mixed with a large dollop of mayhem, and a spoonful of humour?

In this chapter I used the names of the actors/actresses for the names of the governess and both of Alice's parents, since none of their names were mentioned in the movie.

Chapter 1--

Wonderland... a place that had long since become little more than a dream to one Alice Lidell.

Although that wasn't entirely true. Though she was sure it had been just a dream, the young girl had grown up with hopes of once more visiting that marvelous and mysterious place again. She wanted to once more traverse the over sized library, visit the house of the White Rabbit, see the Duchess and her Cook. She longed to have a tea party with Hatter and Hare, sing with Mock and Gryphon. She even wished that she could see the Queen of Hearts again, despite the older woman's disturbing love of chopping off heads.

All in all she missed it all. Every single little detail, no matter how small or insignificant it had seemed at the time.

When she had first returned from her dream land she had sung the Lobster Quadrille, instead of that dreadful Cherry Ripe that she had almost been forced into performing. She had been ever so grateful to Mock and Gryphon for teaching it to her, even if their intention hadn't been for her to sing it to a crowd of her parents' friends.

Her parents' friends... that had been the second clue that Wonderland was just a place of her dreams(the first being seeing an apple falling in the courtroom in Wonderland, but waking up in the same field where she had first seen the White Rabbit). All of the grownups at the party had so closely resembled those whom she had met in Wonderland, that she couldn't help but think it a dream. After all, what other explanation could there have been? There were far too many familiar faces for it to have been but a coincidence. One or two, maybe... but definitely not a whole crowd of people.

As the years past she came to accept that it was all a dream, although in her hearts of hearts, Alice still thought that it had all been real. She had read in a book somewhere that "anything was possible", and she stuck firmly to that belief. Regarding Wonderland at least.

"Alice, would you stop daydreaming and pay attention to your lessons?"

Alice, now a young woman of almost eighteen, looked away from the window she had been gazing out of and stared up at her governess. The woman had always been a thorn in her side, no question about it. "Why must I learn this?" she questioned.

The governess, Dilys, glowered down at the girl. "Two reasons. One, your parents wish for you to know of more than just singing and reading books. Two, it is important for a young woman to have a balanced knowledge of many subjects."

Alice frowned. "But I do have a balanced knowledge," she protested.

"Not to my standards," Dilys said frostily.

"But-"

"No buts! It is time to start paying attention, for once!"

But after five more minutes the governess had begun to realize that words had done little good. Alice was still not paying an ounce of attention, much to her dismay. She sighed. "Very well, we will end here for the day. But Alice, I will be speaking to your parents about your behavior." Turning she stalked out of the room, not waiting to give the girl a chance to talk back to her yet again.

Alice sighed. She was going to be in for it, she knew. Her parents wouldn't be pleased to know that she hadn't been paying attention--again. They had been understanding the first few times, sure, but this was nearing the triple digits. There was no way they would understand. She groaned, flopping back on her bed next to her cat Dinah. The cat, who had been sleeping quite soundly, flew off of the bed with an angry hiss.

"Oh, I'm sorry Dinah," Alice murmured, sitting up to look at the upset cat. "I didn't mean to wake you...I was just so upset that I wasn't thinking straight."

The cat growled, clearly not caring what sort of mood her mistress had been in, before crawling under the bed.

There was a knock at the door, making Alice look up at it. "Yes?"

"Alice, may I come in?" came the voice of her mother on the other side of the mahogany wood.

A feeling of impending doom filled the girl, as well as a great desire to hide under the bed with her cat. "Um... yes, you may," she said hesitantly, biting her lower lip nervously.

The door swung inward slowly, creaking ever so slightly from age. In walked Alice's mother, a tall woman with brown hair, blue eyes, and a beautiful face. Alice supposedly took after her, though she couldn't quite see herself as being beautiful. She supposed that she was sort of attractive, but not nearly as much as her mother was.

"Dear, is something bothering you?" Janine asked her daughter as she sat down upon the bed next to the young woman.

Alice shook her head. "No, nothing," she responded quickly. Too quickly, she instantly realized, for her mother frowned.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Alice... you can talk to me you know. I may be from a different generation, but I do understand that a young lady wants more sometimes."

"More?" Alice repeated curiously.

Janine nodded. "Yes, more. More from life... more than sitting indoors on a beautiful spring day with lessons." Her eyes softened. "There is something bothering you, isn't there?"

Knowing it would do no good to hide it Alice heaved a sigh. "Yes there is. Mother, it's... it's just that I keep dreaming of Wonderland."

Janine blinked, not fully comprehending. "Wonderland?"

"You know, the place I told you about when I was twelve. The place I visited before the tea party where I was to sing for your guests."

"Oh. Of course, silly me for forgetting. But dear, you haven't dreamed of that in so long."

Alice bit her lip again, this time a bit harder. Fiddling nervously with her fingers she shook her head. "That's not exactly true. I've dreamed of it often." The truth of the matter was that she had dreamed of Wonderland almost every night since her first journey there, reliving her adventures.

Janine's face took on an expression of concern. "You have?" 'That isn't normal...' she thought. 'Perhaps I should take her to see a doctor.'

"Well...sometimes."

"I see... but Alice... why is it affecting you so now?"

Alice shrugged. "I really have no idea. My dreams have gotten more and more vivid lately... almost as if they were trying to tell me something."

"Something?"

"Yes, something... I just wish that I knew what."

They were both silent for a moment, neither mother nor daughter knowing what to say. While Alice was regretting ever mentioning Wonderland, her mother was wondering if maybe she really should speak to her husband about sending Alice to see a doctor. At length Janine spoke.

"Alice... do you want to know what I think?" she asked.

The young woman shrugged again. "I suppose," she said.

"I think that it was only a dream, nothing more. I doubt that your dreams of the place now are really anything to worry about. I think that if they're trying to tell you anything, then it's that you need to move past it. Wonderland was a dream of your childhood, and you are no longer a child. So--"

"Are you telling me that I need to grow up and stop dreaming of childish nonsense?" Alice interrupted, her blue eyes narrowed.

Janine shifted uncomfortably. "Not exactly, but--"

"Don't lie to me, mother! I can tell when you lie."

The woman frowned. When had her daughter begun to become so impertinent? "Alice, stop interrupting me. You know that is not a polite thing to do."

Alice laughed bitterly. "Yes mother, like I am in a polite mood right now."

"Alice, where is this mood your in coming from? Did I do something to upset you?"

"No," Alice responded with another almost laugh. "Of course you didn't. You only suggested that I am a child who needs to grow up. You only all but told me that I need to forget about a place that has been dear to me for the last six years of my life. So no mother, why should I be angry?"

Janine stood, her expression dark. "Alice I shall not have you speaking to me in such a way. When you calm down enough to have a rational conversation, please do be so kind as to inform me. Until then you are grounded, and are to remain in your room."

"Grounded?" Alice repeated in stunned disbelief. She hadn't been grounded since she was ten years old. And that had been for breaking her mum's favorite vase. "You can't ground me! I'm eighteen!"

"I can and will. I do not care how old you are. As long as you are living under this roof I am in charge. And as long as you behave like a child, I shall treat you as such." Turning on her heels the woman marched stiffly out of the room, shutting the door securely behind her.

Alice let out a scream of anger. She knew it was childish, but at the moment she really couldn't care less. This just wasn't fair. Tears of frustration filled her eyes, though not a single one fell. Angrily she grabbed a book off of her night table and turned to the bookmarked page. The story had always been one of her favorites--_Cinderella. _The fairy story had been written for children, but she still enjoyed it, even now.

She blinked. Children... she wasn't a child anymore. Maybe only children could visit Wonderland. Perhaps Wonderland was like Neverland from _Peter Pan._ Adults weren't welcome there. A strange sadness filled her heart. Was that really possible? If so, then all of her dreams of returning really were just dreams, and would never be reality. Shaking her head she banished those thoughts. If that were true she would have stopped dreaming about Wonderland already. And since she hadn't, that meant that there was still the chance that she could go back, someday. If she were good. A faint smile came to her lips. Like Cinderella, perhaps if she were good, then maybe good things would happen to her in the end.

* * *

Late that night Alice found herself sneaking back up to her room, hand holding a glass of water. Despite being grounded, she doubted that her parents would blame her much for going down to get water. After all, they didn't want her to die of thirst now, did they? Just as she was about to pass her parents' bedroom she heard faint voices coming from inside the room.

"---Alice..."

Alice froze. They were talking about her. And from the way her father had said her name, the conversation was not a pleasant one. Despite knowing that it was wrong to eavesdrop on the conversations of others, she crept noiselessly closer to the cracked door. It wasn't wrong if the content involved her, was it? That was what she told herself anyway.

Although the crack wasn't big enough for her to see into the room, she could now hear clearly what they were saying.

"Are you sure this is for the best?" her father asked, his voice sounding strangely sad and listless.

"I am," her mother replied. "It's for her own good."

"Is it really?"

Janine sighed. "Jeremy, she still dreams of that place she told us about when she was twelve--Wonderland. She thinks that it's real."

There was a sigh. "...I see... but... is that really so wrong?" her father questioned, his voice now hopeful. "After all, she's still a child."

"No she isn't. Jeremy, she is almost eighteen years old. She is no longer a child. She needs to be able to tell what's real, and what isn't. Besides, I already spoke with Dr. Burbank, and he agrees that it might do her good to stay at his clinic for awhile."

Alice frowned. Dr. Burbank? Clinic? Stay? Well, she knew from meeting the man once that the doctor was a psychiatrist, and... She let out an almost inaudible gasp, covering her mouth with her hand to keep herself from screaming. They wanted to send her away! Well, her mother did anyway. Her father did seem hesitant. She waited anxiously for his answer.

"...you're right, my dear... as always, I'm sure... in the morning I'll call Dr. Burbank and tell him to expect us in the afternoon."

Alice backed away from the door and scurried to her room, not wanting to hear any more. Not wanting, or perhaps unable to hear any more... unable to bear hearing any more. When she was safely in her room with the door shut she let herself fall to the floor with a silent sob. Why was this happening to her? She knew why of course. It was because she had been stupid enough to open her mouth and tell her mother about Wonderland. She should have known better than that! And now this. To be sent to a mental ward because she still believed in a land of dreams. She agreed with her father. What was so wrong with that?

Everything, apparently. From her mother's eyes anyway. Choking back another sob Alice wrapped her arms around herself, the spilled water soaking into her long nightdress. This just wasn't fair! Everything was going so wrong.

That was it, she just wouldn't go to the clinic. But... how could she keep her parents from taking her? They seemed pretty set on doing it, and she doubted that anything she had to say would do any good. And yet... she knew that she just couldn't go. If she did, everything would be over for sure. She knew that if she went then her dreams never would come true.

"Oh... what am I to do?" she whispered once her tears had slowed.

_"...ap...ple..."_

She looked up, startled. "H-hello? Is someone there?"

_"...the apple..." _

There it was again, just a big louder than before, but still hard to make out.

"The apple? What apple?"

_"Find the apple..."_

"What apple?" Alice asked desperately, pulling herself to her feet to stare frantically around her room, searching for the person speaking.

_"The apple... the apple..."_

And almost as quickly as the voice had come, it was gone completely. 'Some help that answer was,' Alice thought. The apple... but what apple? There were millions, no, probably more than millions of apples in the world. And a mysterious voice wanted her to find 'the apple'. What apple was the apple? All of a sudden it hit her.

"The apple..." she murmured. "Of course!" She remembered it as clearly as if it were yesterday. When she had run away from the party, afraid to sing in front of people she didn't know, she had hidden herself under a small apple tree in the orchard. One of the apples had fallen, slowly, spinning even more slowly, almost magically. That was when it had all started... after that she had seen the White Rabbit and traveled to Wonderland for the first time. But... could she possibly find the apple again? Doubtful, since that had been six years ago, and the apple had undoubtedly become worm food just as long ago.

Still though, she had to try. If she didn't then she'd be sent away. And what if she did find it? Then what? Alice hurriedly began dressing. If she did find the apple then she would return to Wonderland. That was all there was to it. Her hands stayed when they fell on a yellow dress, very similar to the one she had been wearing the first time. A small smile crept onto her lips. Yes, she would do it once more. The same way too. Quickly she pulled on the dress, tying over it a white apron, taking care to put a tin of candies in the pocket, just in case. After pulling on white stockings and a pair of black shoes she rushed to the window, not wanting to chance taking the inside root through the house. If she walked past their bedroom again she was sure she would be caught.

Carefully she climbed through the now open window, legs first, slowly, so as to make sure she wouldn't make a mistake and fall to her death. It wasn't high, the distance from her window to the ground, but if she fell, she would surely be hurt badly. Risking a glance down Alice saw that the shingles on the overhang located above the kitchen door were only a few inches away she let go of the window ledge and dropped. Hearing a soft meow she looked back up and saw Dinah staring down at her.

"Goodbye Dinah, I'm sorry, but I really must leave you! Don't be too angry with me."

Once more the girl hung her legs over the side of the overhang and carefully lowered herself until she was near the ground below. When she was but a foot away though her hold on the shingles broke and she felt herself falling. Luckily it was not a long drop, though it was still long enough to give her a scare. She really did need to learn how to be less accident prone.

After righting herself Alice hurried off towards the orchard, starting at a quick walk, but ending in a desperate sprint, not wanting to be caught. At one point she could have sworn that she heard someone calling her name, and she forced herself to go faster, the fear of the clinic greater than the fear of tripping over something in the dark. At least the moon was full, and of course it helped that she knew her way to and from the orchard almost as well as she knew her own hands.

It only took a few minutes of running to reach it. Now came the tricky part. Finding the right tree. The apple trees had changed over the years, some growing taller, some withering away and being removed, and some new ones sprouted, making things much more difficult. Still though, after so many years of dreaming of Wonderland, she knew she would feel it when she was at the right one. So she began to walk slowly through the orchard, past every tree. It was a tedious process, and with every tree that she passed her hope became less and less.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Alice felt a flicker of something pass through her. She stopped, and raised her gaze so she could stare up at the once small tree. The apple tree was no longer young, but now full, and worse, full of fruit as well. "Oh bother... how do I know which is the right one?" She really didn't want to have to go through every single apple as well.

Luck was with her though, and almost as soon as she came to stand under the tree a single apple, green on the bottom, red on top, fell, just like the one that fell six years ago. A smile came to Alice's lips as she watched it slowly rotate. Just as the apple was about to be at her eye level the girl closed her eyes and thought to herself, 'I'm finally going home'.

--

E/N: Love it? Hate it? If you read/are reading 'Return to a Land of Wonder', then you can tell that I probably have some issues with families, since Alice doesn't have a very good relationship with her parents in either story. Anyway, please review and tell me how this is, and what(if anything) I should change/fix. I know there are some grammatical problems at some points, but I want to see what you all think before I start fixing things.


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